The Broken Road
by playingmakebelieve
Summary: Emily and Richard disown Lorelai for getting pregnant and Christopher is no help. So, alone, fifteen, and pregnant, she leaves the only world she has ever known...AU.
1. Welcome to Stars Hollow

**Hi, yeah it's been awhile, this is a new story. Don't worry, Don't Forget to Remember Me is with my beta and will be posted as soon as I get it back. I really hope you like this. Let me know what you think.**

**PMB**

**The Broken Road**

_**Every long lost dream led me to where you are  
Others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars  
Pointing me on my way into your loving arms  
This much I know is true...**_

That God blessed the broken road  
That led me straight to you  


Lorelai's Choice

With an _oomph_ the bus pulls away from the station and continues on its normally scheduled route down the long highway and into the night. Sitting In the back, alone, a teenage girl stares at her shoes – not talking to anyone, or making eye contact. This is her life now: Sleeping on buses, cleaning up in grimy gas station bathrooms, and scarcely eating. She has to conserve what little money she has, knowing as she does that it still won't last forever, and there is no one to turn to for help. In two days, exhaustion overtook her body and mind as she'd ridden, barely able to sleep, to New York and back again. She just wanted to close her eyes for a few minutes but every time she did, she saw their faces. She can still see the shame in her father's eyes and hear the abhorrence in her mother's tone. Finally after forty-eight hours she loses the battle with sleep and her blue eyes fall closed.

"_Mom please," she begged from the sofa in her parents living room. She'd known they wouldn't be happy when she told them. How could they be? She didn't expect them to take things this far. How could they ask her to make a choice like this?_

"_Don't get hysterical, Lorelai," her mother replied coldly rolling her eyes. "Just get your things and go."_

_Her father sits across from her staring at his lap, completely silent letting his wife throw their only daughter out of the house._

"_I'm sorry, Mom!" she cried. "I didn't mean t-" _

"_Look," the older woman snapped growing impatient. "We gave you a choice, and you made your decision. Now I have made mine, I want you out of this house, now! And that's final!"_

"_Where am I supposed to go?" The young girl demanded anger and fear evident in her voice._

"_That is not my problem, Lorelai," She said pointedly, then stood up from the sofa and walked away. _

Her eyes jerk open and Lorelai sighs as the bus stops again. With one exception the bus is hurriedly emptied, everyone headed to their houses and families, but not her. She's alone. Thinking about it, tears well up in her eyes but she shuts them tightly keeping the unwanted moisture at bay. She thinks about her parents' house, the place she used to live and tells herself she never wanted to be there anyway.

Since she was a little girl she'd dreamed of living someplace far away, and she had been almost desperate to get away but not now, not without a plan. She doesn't have a dorm room at an Ivy League school or the promise of a park bench with Chris, in Paris, to look forward to. In the blink of an eye she had turned her life upside down, and that was confirmed as she watched the stick turn pink.

The rain picks up outside, pounding on the window by her seat. She leans her head against the cool window and stares out at the blur of the city. All she can think about are the last few tumultuous days.

She told her boyfriend and he dumped her. He looked her in the face and asked her "Why don't you just get rid of it?" and when she replied with, "No," he walked away. He told her he wanted nothing more to do with her and he definitely wanted nothing to do with their baby.

She can't even bring herself to think of the similar ultimatum her parents had given her.

No one understood that this baby is already part of her. She already loves it. She tried to explain that to them. To her mom and dad, the two people who were supposed to be there to support her no matter what but they just wouldn't hear it. She only has herself now, well, herself and this unborn child that she is suddenly responsible for.

Lorelai reconsiders as the bus screeches with bad breaks coming to yet another dramatic stop. Can she go through with something so horrible? Can she turn around and go home and give into what everyone expects her to do?

"Last stop," the driver yells motioning for her to get off the bus as she shakes her head violently. It isn't an option. She is angry with herself for even debating it; picking up the back pack of clothes she managed to collect before she left home, she stands up.

Saying that she is terrified would be making a bit of an understatement. Not only is it late and dark outside but thunder is beginning to rumble in the distance accompanying the rain. _How can they do this?_ She wonders.

"No, it doesn't matter," she says trying desperately to convince herself. "It's going to be okay, you'll figure it out."

She pulls her bag over her shoulder and steps off the bus and into the small sleepy town.

William Danes a man just over forty walks downstairs and slips his coat on as he picks his keys up off the counter. He has a nice life; a beautiful wife he would do anything for, a son he couldn't be more proud of, and a daughter who, though has lost her way will always be his baby girl; he lives in a nice house and a small town and wouldn't trade it for anything. He looks up and notices his son, Luke, sitting on the couch putting his shoes on.

"Going out with Rachel tonight?" he asks.

"Yeah," The boy replies.

"What you two planning on doing?" he asks his son gruffly as he tosses him the keys to his truck.

"It's Friday night, we may catch a movie or something," Luke replies.

"That sounds nice," he says as he slides his wallet in his back pocket. "Don't stay out too late though. I need you to help me with some yard work tomorrow."

"Yes sir," Luke answers. He stands up and picks his hat up off the table and places it on his head backwards before giving his dad a head nod and walking out the door.

William sighs, a very discernable shake of his head rallies the small smile spread on his face. He walks outside in the nick of time to see his seventeen year old son pulling out of the driveway, and thinks about his own teenage years; it's a fine, fine memory. The clash of thunder brings him back to the present and he half mumbles, "Damn rain," before turning and walking back in the house.

As he pulls out of the driveway he notices his father watching, a rather distant and pleased look suddenly shining in his eyes. He laughs out loud, though there's no one to hear him, and hums as he drives to pick up his girlfriend. He heard the clash of thunder and knows the rain isn't far off, but liking the steady rhythm of rain, he decides to take the long way to her house.

Stars Hollow, his home, is the only place he has ever known and he wouldn't want to trade the quaint town with the kooky people for anything, so driving around, or even walking, he feels like he's paying homage to his favorite town – his town. He drives past his father's store, and then circles the square as the sky opens up and the rain begins to fall: Fat, heavy drops splattering the truck's windshield. He flips on the wipers, smiles to himself, and makes a right hand turn towards the Independence Inn.

It is really coming down by the time he pulls up in front of the inn belonging to his mother's best friend. He grabs the package from his passenger seat and slides out of the car.

Mia is standing behind the front desk when he comes in. She looks up at him and smiles, "Hello Lucas."

"Hey Mia," he replies. "Mom asked me to bring this by."

"Oh right, well you can just leave it on the counter."

"Okay," He walks over and sets the package down. "Everything okay?"

She sighs looking up. "One of my maids just quit and I'm short staffed but other than that no, everything is great." She smiles. "John told me how good you did at the meet, yesterday. He said you're the best on the team."

Luke shakes his head a little embarrassed. "Nah. I'm okay, but…I don't know."

Mia smiles at her best friend's son and looks up from the checks she is signing. "Have you heard from Elizabeth?"

Luke shrugs. "Not in a few days."

Mia frowns and shakes her head. "Your mother must be worried sick."

"Probably, but Liz is gonna do whatever Liz wants to do."

Mia nods in understanding. "Thank you for bringing it by, Lucas, I'll call your mother and tell her I received it."

"Kay, bye Mia."

He hurries back to the truck and starts towards Rachel's house.

As the antique dark green truck moves along the road, Luke looks outside. It is hard to see through the accumulated moisture but he is still able to make out the figure of someone walking in the rain.

Luke keeps driving but something about seeing that person doesn't sit right with him. After debating with himself for a few minutes he turns the truck around.

Since it is dark and raining he has to strain to find the figure in the contrast of the task is not an easy one, but he is successful in the end. He brings the truck to a stop and reaches across his seat to roll down the passenger side window.

She is soaking wet and freezing cold. She has no idea where she is going to sleep tonight. All she wants is to get out of the rain. She looks up and all she can see is precipitation and a sleeping town. She remembers passing a gazebo at some point. She could sleep there or at least get out of this downpour. As she tries to remember which direction it was in a dark green truck pulls up beside her.

Her heart rate picks up. She tries to run but she can't make her feet move. Instead she turns her concentration to the person requesting her attention.

"What the hell are you doing? Don't you know you're walking in the middle of a thunderstorm?" he calls to her.

Lorelai gapes at him. She doesn't know what to say.

"I…uh…"

"Where are you headed? I could drop you off."

Lorelai is unsure of what to do. This guy can't be much older than she is and he certainly doesn't look dangerous but she shouldn't talk to someone she doesn't know. He could be an axe murderer. Then again he offered her a ride which means immediate shelter from the storm, but where would he take her. She has nowhere to go.

Lorelai shrugs her shoulders.

Luke feels bad for the girl. He knows he's never seen her around town before, so maybe she's new and just doesn't know her way around yet.

"Get in," he offers again.

Lorelai holds her breath and pulls open the door. Immediately opening the door she feels warmth on her cold face, and she has to admit that it's better than walking in the rain, so she decides it's better than dying of hypothermia.

"Hi I'm Luke," he offers as an introduction.

"Hi." She manages through her chattering teeth.

"Jeez, you're freezing, where do you live? I can drop you off."

"I…I'm…I…don't know," she answers honestly trying to control her shaking.

Luke turns toward this mystery girl. Her hair is long and black and when she rotates looking back at him he can see that her eyes are incredibly blue and tearing up. She is beautiful but she looks so miserable.

Lorelai is overwhelmed. She doesn't know where she is or where she is headed. She doesn't know how long she will spend on the streets or how hard it will be to find a job. She looks over at the boy next to her and feels a tear slide down her cheek. This is the first one she's allowed herself to cry since her parents kicked her out two days before.

"Do you live in Stars Hollow?" he asks.

Lorelai looks down at her hands and shakes her head.

"Is there someone you need to call?"

She shakes her head again, unsure why she is answering him.

"Where is your family?"

She looks up another time, finding his eyes, "I don't have any." She whispers, reminding herself that she is truly alone in the world, as more tears begin to fall.

Luke sighs. He really wants to help this girl. In all honesty, she reminds him of his sister, who just recently got knocked up, moved out, and then married her loser boyfriend at seventeen.

"Do you have anywhere to go?" he asks, already knowing the answer she'd give him.

"No." She confesses to him timidly. She wasn't about to lay down her whole life story for this guy, but she is much too tired to think up a lie for him, besides, he hadn't dragged her off to some basement and raped her yet so maybe she is safe after all.

Luke turns away from her and puts both of his hands on the wheel. He is conflicted but he knows that she needs help. "I'm going to take you to my house," he tells her firmly. "My mom and dad will know what to do."

Lorelai is too cold, hungry, and weak to argue with him, so she nods her head and remains silent.

She isn't sure how long she'd been in the car with him, but looking up from her hands she watches him pull the truck into the driveway of a very old and beautiful house. It may not be as large as her parents' house with the ivy covered gates and the tiled driveway, but it is no less impressive; large enough to be perfect, not overwhelming.

He stops the car but she doesn't move to climb out of the truck, afraid of what is behind the door of that house; they certainly don't know each other, so the 'why' in his insistence on being chivalrous is fuzzy. It's not like her parents gave a damn what happened to her, their only child, and their unborn grandchild.

Luke gets out of the truck without a word and walks around to the passenger's side to open the door for her. The rain is still coming down outside and he is starting to become drenched with the cold rain.

"Come on," he says. "It's cold out here."

He must have seen the fear in her eyes because when she looks down at him, his face softens. He holds out his hand to her and nods. "It's okay, really. You can trust me."

She doesn't know why but for some reason she believes him. Reluctantly she takes his hand and climbs out of the monstrous vehicle. As she steps down, she considers how appalled her mother would be that she accepted the ride in the first place and that _almost_ makes her smile.

Luke begins to walk in the direction of the door pulling the mystery girl he'd just met along behind him.

He pushes the door open and steps inside, wiping his feet on the rug at the entrance. She reluctantly follows suit but pulls her wet coat around her body tighter; she's afraid someone will notice, through her soaking clothes, that she's pregnant even though she's not showing yet.

She watches him walk further in the house, and timidly follows. In her mind she's making comparisons to her parents' house; where theirs is unwelcoming, this one is inviting. The smell in this beautiful white house is one of cookies baking in the oven, unlike her parents' house. She wants to believe that this is what she was meant to find, but she doesn't want to get her hopes up to have them shattered again.

She's still shaking violently from the cold rain, her teeth chattering. Luke hears her teeth rattling together and sees her shaking when he turns around, so he grabs a throw blanket from the hall closet.

"Here, this will have to do until we can find you some dry clothes," he says soothingly as he wraps the blanket around her shoulders.

The smell of cookies from earlier becomes stronger as they walk deeper into the house, and there's a smell of something else she just can't put her finger on, but her stomach growls like the thunder outside causing Luke to nearly jump out of his skin.

"Mom!" He yells loudly. "Where are you?"

"In the kitchen," a woman's voice is heard echoing through the hallway, although muffled by the distance Lorelai can still detect the warm and loving nature in it's tone.

Luke leads Lorelai into the living room, and motions to the couch if she would care to sit. "Make yourself comfortable, and I'll be right back."

He takes a few steps away and then turns back to see the girl hesitantly sit down on the edge of the sofa as she clings tighter to the blanket he gave her. With a heavy sigh he turns back in the way of the kitchen and jogs into the room to inform his mother of the situation at hand.

"Hey," he says quickly as he enters the warm room.

She turns away from the stove and smiles at him. "I thought you were going out with Rachel."

_Shit! _He thinks. He'd completely forgotten about Rachel in his haste to get home. Making a mental note to call her when this is all straightened out he looks up at his mother seriously. "I have to tell you something."

Her face falls in worry. "What?"

Luke reaches behind his head and nervously rubs the back of his neck. "I…uh…kinda…I mean…"

"Lucas!" she warns needing him to get to the point.

"I brought someone home." He blurts quickly.

Her expression resembles confusion. "What?"

"I was on my way to pick up Rachel and I saw this girl walking in the rain, so I offered her a ride…it's what Dad would do, and I was just trying to be nice but she isn't from around here and she doesn't have anywhere to go so I brought her here."

"You brought someone here?" she repeats for clarification.

"Yeah, she's uh…in the living room." He confirms.

Her jaw drops. "Luke you can't just go around picking up strangers and bringing them home, what if she is some sort of sociopath."

Luke looks down at the floor and then slowly brings his eyes back up to meet hers. "I think she's really in trouble, Mom." He tells her quietly.

Her features relax and she nods calmly. "Okay, I'll go talk to her. You stay in here and keep an eye on dinner."

"Yes ma'am."

She starts to leave but then turns back to her son. "What's her name?"

Luke's face goes blank, as he realizes he never bothered to ask.

Lorelai wraps her arms tighter around her body, trying to warm herself. She shifts uncomfortably in her wet clothes, trying not to feel so awkward in a stranger's home and in her own skin. Nervously, she shakes the pain caused by the cold out of her hands and squeezes them tightly between her thighs while she waits for that Luke boy to return.

Her eyes dance around the room. She sees family pictures on the wall. The people in them look perfect, but most of all they look happy. She wonders if they are as normal as they appear. She takes a closer look. Luke, the guy who picked her up, clearly has his mother's eyes and his father's everything else. His sister looks a little crazy, and she shares her mother's blonde hair but her eyes are brown like her father's. Lorelai can't help but wonder what her baby will look like. Footsteps can be heard in the hall, she braces herself as she turns and watches the older woman from the picture approach her.

When Leigha Danes walked into her living room the last thing she expected to find was a child. She almost stops to marvel at the girl who appears younger than her own children but catches herself and smiles.

"Hi," she says gently, not wanting to startle the already terrified teen.

Lorelai looks up at her and Leigha can see the tear track impressions made on her dirty face. "Hi," she replies, her voice soft and barely audible.

They hide in the uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Lorelai's eyes grow wide in realization and she jumps up dropping the blanket behind her as she stands. "I shouldn't be here," she blurts. "I don't know you. I don't know where I am. What am I doing?"

From her spot on the sofa Leigha can see how young the girl is and she wonders how she ended up wandering the streets. "How old are you?" she finds herself asking.

Lorelai stares down at her and finds herself falling back down onto the sofa. She looks down at her lap and mutters quietly, "Fifteen."

Leigha stops herself from gasping out loud. Her son was right. This girl does need help. Her mind travels away to her own daughter, Liz, and she wonders what she would want someone to do for her if she was out on her own, alone, and scared. Leigha makes a decision.

Lorelai looks up and sees the woman smiling softly at her in a way that says everything is going to be okay. "Why don't we get you changed into something dry, and then we can talk. Is that okay….." she asks kindly, trailing off, giving Lorelai room to fill in her name.

"Lorelai."

"Lorelai." The woman repeats. "I'm Leigha, Leigha Danes. Why don't you follow me upstairs? I know that my daughter will have something that will fit you."

She stands and motions for Lorelai to follow.

Luke pulls the lasagna out of the oven and walks over to the cabinet to pull out the plates while he waits for the bread to finish up. While debating whether or not to set out a plate for the mystery girl his mother re-enters the room.

Luke turns to her. "So?"

"So what?" His mother questions back.

"What happened? Why was she out there in the streets?"

"I don't know." Leigha tells him honestly. "We didn't get that far."

"Well how far did you get?" Luke replies incredulously thinking that is the first question she should have asked.

"Don't take that tone with me Lucas."

"Sorry," Luke sighs. "I just meant…."

She stops him and explains. "It's okay. I just got her some of Lizzie's clothes and showed her where the shower is. Oh and I got a name."

"Oh. What is it?" He wonders.

"Lorelai." She says simply.

Luke isn't surprised that the mystery girl would have a name as enchanting as she is. "That's a….weird name." Leigha shrugs. "Is she staying for dinner?"

"I think so, Luke. Set a place for her and go get your father out of the garage." She says. "I'm going to go check on our house guest."

Luke nods. "Yes, Ma'am." He turns to take the bread out of the oven.

"Oh Luke?" she says.

"Yes Mom?"

"You did good. Picking her up, bringing her back here. You did a good thing. I'm proud of you."

He smiles. "Thanks."

He watches his mother walk away and then takes the bread out of the oven and proceeds to get his father.

"Hey Dad," he calls as he enters the garage. "Mom says to come in for dinner."

William looks up from the boat he is restoring, "I thought you were going out with Rachel?"

Luke shrugs. "Plans changed."

"Alright," William says with a grunt as he stands.

"I'm going to wash my hands," Luke says before walking into the house and immediately starting toward the phone. He feels bad for blowing off his girlfriend, but it wasn't intentional. It just happened. She'll understand, he tells himself as he picks up the phone and dials her number.

"Hello?" he hears when she picks up the phone. He notes that she sounds aggravated and he sighs knowing how upset she is going to be.

"Hey Rachel, it's me." He says quietly.

"Luke? Where are you? You were supposed to be here over an hour ago." she replies angrily.

"I'm at my house, look something came up an-"

"Something came up?" She repeats

"Yeah, there was an emergency, I'm sorry."

He can tell that her voice has softened. "It's okay, I guess. We can go out tomorrow?"

"We'll see." Luke says rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll call you tomorrow, and I'm real sorry again for making you wait like that."

"It's alright Butch," she says sincerely. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Yeah, tomorrow." He mutters into his end before placing the phone back on the receiver.

William walks in the house as Leigha makes her way downstairs. She smiles. "Hey."

"Hey." He replies.

"We need to talk." She tells him and grabs him gently by the arm to pull him into the kitchen.

"What's going on?"

"We are going to have a house guest for the night." She explains never losing her smile.

"We are?" her husband questions gruffly.

"Yes."

"Care to elaborate?"

"Lucas found a girl walking in the rain and brought her back here." She tries calmly but William jumps up.

"He did what?"

"She was soaking wet and freezing cold and he just did what he thought you would do in that situation. She is just a kid William, please."

William sighs, he isn't that excited about the idea of sharing his house with a stranger but his wife seems insistent on letting her stay the night. He sighs, "Just tonight."

Leigha smiles wider and nods, kissing his cheek. "Thank you."

**Review please!**


	2. The Book of Luke

**This chapter took me almost two years to write. That is a little bit ridiculous. LOL. And I quite honestly hope that it never takes me that long to complete a chapter again! I am so sorry. But you guys seemed to love it so much and I just wanted to make it great. And I just couldn't seem to get out everything that I wanted to. There are so many places I want to take this story. A hundred different directions really but I finally have given myself a path and a way to pace myself. I am so glad that I can share this with you guys and I hope you'll continue to support me and my stories despite my absence. **** Thanks. **

**PMB **

The Book of Luke

_**Everyone knows I'm in over my head, over my head. There's eight seconds left in overtime. She's on your mind. She's on your mind. –The Fray "Over My Head (Cable Car)"**_

_Christopher shoved his hands in his pocket and looked up at her as she stared into the eyes of the boy she loved. He'd said things to her before that had hurt her feelings and her pride, but no words from him had ever hurt her heart this much._

"_I-"she started, for once in her life at a loss for words. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. "Chris…please…." she stammered, her voice almost begging him to reconsider, but somewhere deep inside she knew he never would._

"_I'm sorry Lorelai," he said, and from those three little words, she knew she'd lost him forever. "I just can't do this right now. I'm only seventeen. I'm going to Princeton in the fall... I'm too young to be a Dad." The coldness one would expect from an admission like this was not there, Lorelai could see the love in his eyes. Yes, she knew he loved her and Christopher knew that she loved him, but with the decision they were ultimately facing, she knew that their love would not be strong enough. He loved his life too much to say yes and she loved her baby too much to say no. Something would have to give and that was their relationship. So she walked away._

As Lorelai stands staring at her reflection in the foggy mirror she replays her last moments with her best friend and ex-boyfriend in her head. She isn't angry at him anymore, only hurt. The kind of hurt that cuts so deep, the pain never really goes away; it only numbs. Unable to keep herself from wondering if she'll ever see him again, the memory plays itself over and over in her mind.

The thought that they may never be in the same place at the same time again, never touch, never hug, never share a kiss, or even a smile for that matter, makes her sicker than the overwhelming knowledge that her parents don't want anything to do with her anymore. He was her family, her love, her home and now he was gone. For someone who thought she was so independent, she had been very wrapped up in this guy. Then again, she'd known him forever and they were a team. It made sense that their breakup would leave her shattered and heartbroken, struggling to keep herself together. She is only fifteen after all. Somewhere deep inside of her she just hopes that one day, maybe, they can be friends again.

A knock on the bathroom door jolts her from her recollection and causes Lorelai to jump. Being homeless and pregnant has made her somewhat more anxious and jumpy than normal.

"Lorelai…"she hears before she has a chance to respond to the knock. "Its Leigha… I've found some clothes for you and I wanted to let you know that dinner is ready."

"Okay," Lorelai says, clutching the towel wrapped around her body and setting the one she used to dry her hair down on the counter. Slowly she cracks the door open enough to retrieve the clothes that Leigha has for her.

The older woman hands her the clothes through the crack in the door as Lorelai utters a soft but seemingly confident, "Thanks."

This makes Leigha smile. "Are you hungry?" she asks quickly. "Dinner is ready." She knows that her husband thinks that she is only using this girl to make up for what she feels like are her own failures as a mother, and maybe that is true to some extent, but she meant what she said. If her daughter was lost and alone out there she would want someone to help her. She would want someone to take care of her. If anything, determination is Leigha Danes' middle name. If there is any way in the world she can help this girl, this Lorelai, get back on track she'll do it.

Lorelai nods, she's slightly ashamed of herself, but she doesn't even feel bad for imposing. She is too hungry to be arrogant in her situation. Her baby needs nourishment and she is in no position to turn down help, as much as she'd like to be able to take care of things on her own.

"Okay," Leigha says softly. "You go ahead and get dressed and then come down when you are ready."

"Okay," Lorelai repeats and Leigha steps away from the door.

Alone again, the girl looks over the clothes that Leigha has given to her. A baggy t-shirt and sweatpants. It looks so much more comfortable than the tight clothes she's been wearing, but it all feels so strange to her. Sleeping in the home of strangers, wearing clothes that belonged to a person she has never met, using their shower, eating their food. It is so strange she feels like she has entered the twilight zone, but as Lorelai dresses she notes that the warmth of this place and the people in it have made her feel more at home than she ever did with Emily and Richard.

Luke sits at the table with his mother and father waiting. William is quiet, seemingly steaming over this arrangement. He looks over at his wife and whispers, "Why didn't you just send her to Mia? She has an inn. A room this girl can stay in."

His wife just looks over and gives him a stern but understanding look. "It's just for tonight, hon. Tomorrow we'll make other arrangements." Her tone is sweet but the way she said it made everyone at the table understand that on this subject she was not negotiating.

Luke looks down at the table thinking. He is glad that his mother is letting her stay for the night, but he is very confused. The girl he picked up looked younger than his sister. He wonders where she came from, and how she ended up in Stars Hollow, and what is going to happen to her now. He wouldn't be able to explain why if asked; he just knows he doesn't want to see her go.

The parents quickly stop their bickering back and forth over the matter when they hear footsteps on the stairs and the girl steps out from around the corner.

Amazed, Luke stares as the girl approaches them and takes a seat at the table.

"Do you feel better?" He hears his mother ask her.

"Yes, thank you," she replies, with a voice that sounds much less broken than the one he heard before in his truck, and when she smiles he nearly falls out of his chair. "I really appreciate you letting me sleep here tonight; it's very kind of you. I promise I will leave first thing in the morning," she assures them quickly.

"No!" Leigha exclaims. "That's not what we want at all! We are more than happy to help you, Lorelai! We don't want you to just leave; we want to help you work out whatever it is that you're going through."

Lorelai glances up and nods, unsure of what else to say or do.

"You must be starving," Leigha continues, grabbing and plate and scooping a healthy portion of lasagna onto it for the girl placing it in front of her. "I hope you like it."

"Thank you," she responds, all too quickly grabbing the fork and shoveling food in her mouth, torn between trying not to eat too fast and getting something…anything...into her system. Oh, if Emily could see her now she'd have a field day.

No one talks much during dinner, which isn't unusual for the Danes' family. Dinners have been more quiet than not since Liz left, but this isn't their typical dysfunctional family silence. Everyone seems to be lost in their own heads with too many questions, more than any of them can find answers to tonight.

After they finish eating Leigha collects their plates and takes them to the kitchen with the help of her son. "I am going to go get Lorelai settled into Lizzy's room. You should go get some rest," she says to him.

Luke nods and leaves the kitchen. Although it is far too early for him to go to bed he figures that it has been a pretty stressful day and if nothing else he can get out of his mother's way and maybe call Rachel back. "Goodnight," he says to Lorelai has he passes by the kitchen table, his father having long gotten up.

She looks up and gives him a small smile of gratitude. "Goodnight, Luke."

He nods in return and walks up the stairs to his bedroom, sits on his bed and grabs a magazine but he can't focus enough to actually read it because on the other side of his wall he can hear his mother getting Lorelai settled in his sister's room.

He figures she must be tired. It's been a pretty emotionally draining day, at least for him, and he wasn't the one walking around Stars Hollow in the middle of the night in the rain. He wonders what this girl is running from as he lays back on his bed, unable to rid his mind of her dark drenched hair or her sad blue eyes.

Lorelai wakes in the morning feeling quite awful. She can't breathe; not through her nose, anyway. Her body aches all over and her head feels like it is full of hot pudding. Her body is burning up and freezing at the same time. Reaching down she grabs the strange comforter that she kicked off sometime during the night and wraps it around her shivering body. It's then that she realizes that she isn't in her room and that this isn't her bed. She has been cast away, exiled like so many before her, banished to anywhere as long as it was far far away from the Gilmore mansion. She slowly remembers the night before and the big clanking truck that saved her from the storm.

The girl pushes herself up into a sitting position despite her body's protests. She looks around and really takes a good look at the room for the first time. When Leigha had brought her in the night before, she didn't know what to do with herself. She knew that she shouldn't spend the night but after they had been so congenial to her and given her a shower and food and offered her a place to stay, not to mention the fact that it was raining like the second flood, she really had no choice. She laid on the bed and- truth be told she doesn't even remember falling asleep, just the woman, Leigh Danes talking to her about where everything is- and then nothing.

She can hear things going on outside, and that makes her wonder what time it is. Her upbringing tells her she should get up, but her pounding head, sore throat, and stuffy nose argue with her, telling her that she's fine right where she is. Another truth she feels the need to acknowledge to herself: regardless of her full nights rest she is still completely exhausted. Her days out on her own had taken something out of her that she desperately wanted back: her contentment. She rolls away from the window clinging tighter to the blanket, wondering what she is going to do next. She still had no plan. No place to go. She'd tried New York and found herself too scared to get off the bus. Lorelai knows that she can't stay forever, and she would feel terrible wearing out her welcome, but maybe if she was very quiet they'd forget she was there and she could have a few minutes to sleep. She knew that it was crazy. It even sounded crazy in her head. These people didn't know her from Molly Ringwald, and they'd still let her spend the night in their house. Deciding not to take advantage of them she starts to sit up again, as there is a knock on the bedroom door.

Leigha opens the door a little but doesn't peak inside. "Lorelai? Are you awake?"

Lorelai remembers the voice without even having to see her. The woman in question was simply beautiful like her mother but in a completely different way. Lorelai remembers thinking that she looked like she could have been a beauty queen once upon a time when she first saw her walk in the living room the night before. Her chestnut brown hair was down and hanging at her shoulders with eyes almost identical to her son's. Dressed in jeans and a pink sweater with the sleeves pushed up to her forearms Lorelai didn't notice anything but her dazzling smile. She was sure that this woman was a movie star in a past life.

Lorelai clears her throat, trying to no avail to suppress sounding truly god awful. "Yes."

Leigha pushes the door open and smiles a little, closing the door behind her as she steps into the room. She walks over slowly. "Did you sleep well?" Her smile is contagious and Lorelai can't help but produce one of her own as she nods. She opens her mouth to speak but instead of saying 'yes' she sneezes. Leigha's smile fades. "Oh no! It looks like you caught a cold," she says sitting down on the bed beside Lorelai and feeling her forehead. She nods then confirming her diagnosis. "Well that is what you get for walking in the rain in the middle of winter, isn't it?" she asks rhetorically as she stands up and gets Lorelai another blanket from the closet, walks back over to the bed and drapes it over her. "Don't worry. We'll have you good as new in no time."

Lorelai stares at her, shocked, as she takes a seat beside her again. She doesn't know what to say. Is this woman really giving her permission to stay longer? Her head swims with questions but Leigha speaks again before she can begin. "I will go downstairs and make you some chicken soup. It's my grandmother's recipe and that combined with some rest and maybe a bit of cough syrup should do the trick. But first I think we should talk. There are some things that we need to clear up."

Lorelai nods. She knew this would part would have to happen sooner or later. When she and the woman had their little sit down the night before, Leigha had only asked her basic questions. "What is your name?" "How old are you?" "Do you have anywhere to go tonight?" She knows that Mrs. Danes is going to want answers from the stranger sleeping her daughter's room and she is the only one that can provide them.

"Where are your parents? Do they know you're gone?" Leigha asks gently, seeing a lot more spirit in the young woman's eyes than she had the night before.

Lorelai clears her throat. "My parents live in Hartford,"she answers honestly. "They know that I am gone. They told me to leave."

Leigha finds it hard to believe that anyone would tell their fifteen year old to just leave but she can tell that the girl isn't lying. "Why?"she asks genuinely curious.

Lorelai turns red not wanting to admit to anyone else that she is pregnant. All it got her from her family, her friends, her boyfriend was shunned and turned away and she couldn't handle that kind of rejection again. Not now, and especially not from a stranger. She brings her hand up to her face wondering if there is any way she can explain without explaining and Leigha seems to take the hint from this gesture.

"It's okay, sweetheart," Leigha says so softly that at first Lorelai isn't even sure that she has said anything. Her heart races as she moves her hand and looks at the woman. "Whatever it is…It isn't the end of the world."

Lorelai laughs, she can't help it. If only this woman actually knew that her world had ended the minute that stick turned pink. Ironically, Leigha already has an inkling of what this secret might be. Lorelai's face was full and her although she was tiny her stomach protruded in a way that suggested motherhood was approaching. Besides that she had just gone through the same thing with finding out her own teenage daughter was pregnant. No, the situations weren't identical, but it wasn't hard to guess.

"I can help you," Leigha says looking Lorelai in the eye. "I know things seem scary now, but believe me, it can only get better. We'll get you well and then you can let me know when you've made a decision and we can go from there. Is that okay?"

Lorelai's jaw drops. She wonders how it is this woman was able to read her so well. _You're not as mysterious as you think, Lorelai. _Her mother's voice says loud and clear echoing through her head.

Leigha starts to get up but Lorelai speaks stopping her. "-but that's it. That's why my parents made me leave. I've already made my decision."

Leigha sits back down understanding. "I see…" she thinks for a moment. "Well do you have a plan?"

Lorelai sighs and shakes her head and begins to spill out her train of thought without even second guessing herself, trusting this woman with her guarded information like she'd known her her whole life. "I was going to go to New York and get a job and save some money up to get a place for us. I got on the bus but when it stopped in the city- it was dark… I didn't want to get off so I kept riding and somehow I ended up here. I don't even know how."

"And now?" Leigha asks reaching for some tissues on the bedside table as Lorelai sneezes again.

"Now…"She begins wiping her nose. "I don't know. Find a place and a job. I have a little money left, birthday money and stuff like that I've saved up…I was going to go to California…see what I can do there…"

"You could stay in Stars Hollow," Leigha offers quickly without thinking. "I'm sure there are a million places that you could find a job around here."

Lorelai nods, not wanting to think about anything but making her headache go away, but this is what a parent does, she tells herself. Leigha seems to sense this. "Why don't you just focus on getting better and when you do we'll sit down and come up with a real plan?"

The sound of the word plan makes her cringe but she quickly nods in agreement. "Now how about that soup?"

"Thank you," Lorelai says with a smile. Those two easy words meaning so much more than their simplicity.

Leigha smiles, happy to be able to help. "You're welcome," she says as she gets up and leaves the room walking downstairs to get started on the soup for Lorelai and maybe some tea as well. She doesn't know why she feels so compelled to help her and she knows that William won't like that she invited her to stay longer but she just couldn't help herself. She sees too much of herself in the young girl to just let her up and walk away.

Luke walks in the house gross and sweating from having spent the morning working outside with his father. He walks in the kitchen and pours himself a cold glass of water.

"Hey!" His mom smiles over at him as she ladles some soup into a bowl. "Are you hungry?" she asks as he walks to the cabinet to get a glass for ice water.

He takes a long drink first then puts the glass down. "Starving," he says to her.

"Good, lunch is almost ready. Tell your dad too, okay?"

"Okay." He nods. "How is Lorelai?"

"She has a bit of a cold, it seems…. She is going to be staying a little bit longer."

"Oh…How much longer?" he asks curiously, compelled by the dark haired stranger.

Leigha looks up with a knowing grin on her face. "Does her being here make you uncomfortable, Luke? If it does, you know I'll make other arrangements."

"What?" he asks like the thought hadn't even occurred to him. "No…no! It's good. I was just wondering, you know?"

She nods looking back down into the pot of soup she is stirring. "Yes, I know." She stops pulling a bowl out of the cabinet and then a plate and then a glass. "Will you get the orange juice for me please, kiddo?" she asks as she fills the bowl with steaming hot chicken soup. Luke goes and does as his mother asks getting the orange juice from the fridge. He fills the glass and then puts it back and Leigha smiles at him again. "Thank you."

"No problem," he says again thinking about the girl inhabiting his sister's bedroom upstairs. "Why don't you take this up to her?" The bowl is set on a plate and then pushed toward him. "I need to go talk to your father for a few minutes anyway." "Oh," Luke says feeling tightness in his stomach. "Sure I can do that."

She pats his shoulder and makes her way out the same door he came in leaving him to his fate with the blue eyed stranger.

Luke finds a bed tray and loads the food and medicine his mother has gotten out on to it, then slowly makes his way up the stairs balancing the tray like his life depends on it. And why? For a silly little girl that didn't have sense enough to wear a coat in the rain. He shakes his head. He feels that he is definitely thinking too much about this Lorelai but how can he help it with someone so beautiful and mysterious under his own roof. Technically his parents own roof, but still. As he reaches the door he knocks lightly incredibly still keeping the tray balanced.

"Umm," he starts getting stuck on what to say. "Lorelai…. It's Luke… I have your lunch."

"Come in!" he hears from inside his sister's bedroom. Carefully, he grabs the door knob, balancing the tray so that he doesn't spill anything, and slips into the room. Lorelai makes room for the tray on the nightstand beside the bed. "Thank you," she mumbles.

"My mom put some Tylenol on there for you….to help with the cold…"he says awkwardly standing in the middle of the room.

She smiles at him a little shyly. Where would she be now if he hadn't stopped for her?

"I guess I should eat my lunch too…" he says starting for the door, but surprising herself, Lorelai finds herself stopping him.

"Hey wait…." she says. "Ummm. If you want you could eat with me."

Luke smiles and nods. "Yeah, sure. Just let me grab my lunch and I'll be right back," he says heading back downstairs.

"Okay." Lorelai smiles back and watches his backward baseball capped head disappear into the hall.

The boy makes his way back down the stairs with a smile on his face. He jumps the last two steps reaching the landing with a _thump!_

"Everything alright?" his mother asks as she passes from the living room to the kitchen, eyeing him suspiciously.

He blushes, "Yes ma'am. Lorelai asked if I would eat lunch with her…"

She smiles to herself and exhales, "Well… alright."

Luke makes himself a bowl and takes it back upstairs.

"Oh, Lucas!" Leigha calls just as Luke plants his foot on the first step. He stops and turns around again. "Yes?" he asks.

She opens her mouth and starts to say something but then stops herself and smiles, "Nothing, never mind…. I think it's nice of you to keep Lorelai company."

Upstairs Lorelai goes over in her head what possessed her to ask him to stay with her. She hadn't planned on it. It just sort of happened and she is glad she did. Glad he said yes. Truthfully she had been lonely these last few days since leaving her parent's house and Luke was someone her age – at least around her age that she could just shot the breeze with. Forget about her problems for a few minutes and have a little lunch with someone who has no idea who she is. She smiles when she hears his footsteps on the stairs and her heart was actually racing a little bit when he opened the door although she didn't really notice.

"You came back," she says plainly.

"Yup." Luke goes and sits down on the side of his sister's bed with his bowl of soup.

She hasn't touched hers. She isn't really hungry though. She knows she should eat since Leigha went through all that trouble, but she is afraid it might make her sicker. Oh inner turmoil she thinks to herself then looks up at the boy in front of her. She notes that he looks a lot like his mom. His dad too. Sorta like a perfect combination of the two of them.

"I think I owe you a thank you," Lorelai finds herself saying suddenly.

He looks down into his bowl and she thinks he might be embarrassed. "You already thanked me," he reminds her, and she wonders why he is being so modest about the whole thing.

"I know, but you should be properly thanked. I was a little out of it last night." She sniffled feeling her nose start to run.

"Anyone would have done the same thing." He tries shrugging off his heroic actions but Lorelai won't hear any of it.

"If you say so… but my point is that no one else did except you and so you should get a medal or a hero cookie." He laughs and then looks up at her.

"Seriously, it was no big deal." He says gruffly trying not to show how flattered he is. "My Mom is really the one who helped you out. I just brought you home."

She frowns. "I'm just trying to say thank you."

"You're welcome."

Her smile returns, "See, now was that so hard?"

He shrugs and takes a bite of soup. She remembers her untouched bowl and does the same. "What were you doing out there anyway?" he asks and when she doesn't answer him right away he looks up and sees the almost sad look on her face. "I'm sorry…. I didn't mean to-"

"No," she mutters, stopping him. "It's okay… you have a right to ask."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. It's no big deal really."

She sighs. "I just… It's kinda a long story. I don't even know where to begin really."

"Well the beginning is always a good place, I think." Luke shrugs not really wanting to pressure her into talking if she really doesn't want to.

Lorelai can't help but laugh. "I guess you could just say that my parents and I don't see eye to eye on somethings….most things." She stops and looks in her soup bowl. "Actually I would say we don't see eye to eye on anything…"

"I'm sure they're not that bad," he says without thinking. Luke had never known parents that just didn't care about how their children felt.

The girl in front of him rolls her eyes. "What would you know about it? Your parents are pretty much completely amazing."

He couldn't argue with her there. "Well what are your parents like?" he asks.

"You really want to know?" she asks looking up at him.

"Well I asked…."

She sighs. "Well my mother basically functions as a party planner and thinks that her only job is to order people around and plan tea parties and cotillions and go to DAR meetings."

"What's a DAR?"

Lorelai laughs...

Downstairs William and Leigha were discussing an entirely different matter.

"How's Lorelai?" William asks as he looks up over the rim of the newspaper he is reading.

"She's doing fine."

William nods, "Good."

"Will..." Leigha says shyly, catching her husband's attention quickly.

"What Leigha?"

"I was thinking, since Liz doesn't seem to be coming back anytime soon, and her room is still in order...We could..."

"We could what, Leigha?" William grunts, just wanting his wife to spit out whatever she wants to say.

"We could let Lorelai stay here. Just until she finds a job and gets her feet back on the ground."

"No. We can't just take in a stranger," William protests.

"William, we can't just send the poor girl off on the streets." Leigha tries to reason with her stubborn husband.

"We can find her a hotel or something. I just don't like the idea of having a person under our roof that we don't know anything about."

"I know one thing," Leigha states, "I know that if it was Lucas or Elizabeth that was in a rough patch, you would want someone nice as us to take them in. You would be relieved to know that your child was safe."

Will sets down his newspaper and stares at his wife. He sighs and gives in, "Fine. She can stay."

Leigha walks over to her husband, kisses his sweetly, "You know we are doing the right thing." She tries to reassure him but he has his doubts and knows that this is going to be a long and crazy ride.

**Okay, so thoughts? Should I keep going? Have a I lost you all for good?**


End file.
